Ongoing work Links with other projects These projects, and others currently Community Landscape Archaeology Survey Project | Community Landscape Archaeology Survey Project | Community Landscape Archaeology Survey Project The project is still continuing — CLASP is involved in several other under consideration, all form a part indeed, some exciting work still lies long-term projects focused on Iron of CLASP's stated aim — “to research, ahead. Much fieldwork remains to be Age and Roman-period sites in west interpret and document the early carried out on the eastern side of the . historical landscape of west Northamptonshire, working closely site, including further geophysics + At Whitehall Farm, a Roman villa with the local Historic Environmental surveys and targeted excavation of site close to (in Record, English Heritage and other trial pits and trenches to clarify parish), CLASP regional and national bodies to carry detailed points. Thanks to extensive spent 13 years excavating the villa out archaeological research to and consistent fieldwork over several site. Excavation is now largely professional standards by involving — ‘the market on the promontory’: years with a workforce of finished, and the focus is now on the local community”. experienced volunteers — preparing for publication what has An integrated landscape survey of a Roman posting station and its hinterland commercial archaeological projects been learned. Find out about CLASP cannot afford to pour in this amount + In the 'Local People - Local Past' If you found this leaflet interesting, of human resource — this project project, CLASP is aiming to study and think that you might like the has already yielded a huge variety of social evolution and characterise idea of working with a friendly Roman posting stations artefacts, in addition to correlating settlement over the wider area, group, and getting some fresh air Bannaventa was a walled posting results from earlier work on the site. bringing together data from and healthy exercise whilst making a Considerable excavation work was station. The had four CLASP is now working patiently on many sites and using map-based serious contribution to professional carried out at Tripontium, but this focused on the bath-house complex, types of posting station: the analysis and interpretation of the analysis, to piece together an archaeology, maybe you should and it was not possible to examine the posting station’s hinterland owing to + : a high-class overnight finds. Such a large assemblage of overall picture of the locality consider joining CLASP! Watling Street existing industrial development. guest house for VIP travellers, coins, pottery and other artefacts from late Iron Age to early post- CLASP is always keen to welcome requiring proof of identity. provides a wealth of evidence of the Roman times. new volunteers. New projects are Bannaventa details of social life — from daily life + A similar survey is also underway + Caupona: relatively low-status regularly planned and executed, overnight accommodation near a within the town and its hinterland to on the hinterland around knowledge is shared and training in trading links, both local and far-flung. Lactodorum () to Posting stations were located at regular mansio, often a haunt for thieves, both fieldwork and archaeological points along the main transport arteries of prostitutes and the like. This project will serve as a reference identify similarities to and the Roman empire, providing reliable computing skills is given in a friendly overnight accommodation, stabling, + Taberna:betterclassthana point, whose archaeological profile differences from the localities changes of horse, and a variety of support environment. services (wood- and metal-working, caupona, offering refreshment to aids and informs interpretation of that surround both settlements. leatherwork, veterinary services, etc). Lactodorum other nearby sites from the Roman + CLASP is currently providing For more details, contact CLASP at [Towcester] the traveller. period and the development of new input, for the whole of http://www.claspweb.org.uk. + Mutationis: servicing vehicles and animals, with wheelwright, approaches to such landscape Northamptonshire, to the Iron Bannaventa is a way station on the on themansio bath-house complex. cartwright and veterinary studies. Age Hillforts Atlas project, led by major Roman road 'Watling Street‘ The opportunity for CLASP to carry services in addition to changes of the Institute of Archaeology at —Brief the modern explanation A5 trunk road. The of story title You can read more details about out a multi-discipline archaeological horse. Oxford University. posting station is 16km north-west archaeology at Bannaventa in: study across a wide area of the It still remains to be determined of the Roman town of Lactodorum + “Excavations at Bannaventa and Bannaventa site therefore promises what type of posting station was (modern Towcester), and 19km Whilton Lodge, Northants, 1970-1”, to contribute significantly to this created at Bannaventa — although south-east of Tripontium (now B.Dix & S.Taylor, in Brittania Vol. 19 relatively neglected area of the archaeologists originally viewed it as Cave's Inn). Bannaventa stands on a (1988), pp299-339 study of . a humblemutationis , CLASP's work + “Whilton Lodge, Bannaventa: hilltop with a fine view to the south This leaflet was printed thanks to The project will combine data from on the site's layout has revealed Extensive Urban Survey Report”, along Watling Street — the Roman generous funding from the Milton Brief explanation ofearlier story work title with new fieldwork evidence to suggest that J.Taylor, 2002 name translates as 'the market on Keynes Heritage Association. using modern techniques — field- Bannaventa may in fact have + “The Portable Antiquities Scheme the promontory'. walking, metal-detection and included a high-status mansio. and Roman Britain”, T. Brindle, Brit. Little systematic archaeological geophysics surveys, analysis of Mus.Res. Publ. 196 (2014), pp81-83 workBrief has been explanation undertaken on the of story title Roman posting stations along historic aerial photographs, and Watling Street, other than the some trial excavations. excavation work by Rugby This project was undertaken by ArchaeologicalBrief explanation Society at the ofCLASP story in conjunction title with English neighbouring posting station at Heritage, and will inform future Tripontium, which focused mainly conservation policy for the site.

Community Landscape Archaeology Survey Project | Community Landscape Archaeology Survey Project | Community Landscape Archaeology Survey Project Community Landscape Archaeology Survey Project | Community Landscape Archaeology Survey Project | Community Landscape Archaeology Survey Project Layout and chronology Geophysics surveys In the southern hinterland, evidence Thesiteappearstohavebeenfirst CLASP's fluxgate magnetometer and shows that the early sprawl of the 20 Roman station was later reduced, occupied in the Late Iron Age — a resistivity meter have been used to and this area became a cemetery. rectangular enclosure has been survey about 117 acres in detail, identified, with a significant enclosing covering the core of the walled town ditch, overlaid by the course of and its western hinterland. The 10 Watling Street. Iron Age potsherds wealth of detail revealed is indicated and coins have been recovered from in the illustrations on this page, in the area, including a gold quarter- which roads and track-ways, field- stater of Cunobelinus (died 42AD), 0 systems and individual enclosures andbronzeLateIronAgecoins. mm are all distinguishable. Note the rectangular ditched feature Organised metal-detection surveys The layout of the visible anomalies (circled in black), which appears to have were carried out across the site, by indicates that the entire site was been cut through by the later route of L: Iron Age gold stater Watling Street, suggesting that this site CLASP members from Norton Thecoinassemblagecoverstheentire R: Late Roman coins, mainly developed in phases, including the was already occupied in the Iron Age. Northamptonshire Portable Roman occupation (C1-C5) with most found within the walled area town itself — features from Antiquities Search Team (NNPAST) of the coins from the C3/C4, 3rd- different periods overlap and Close-up views reveal some and Northamptonshire Artefact century coins being found all across + The posting station and its intersect. Study of such overlapping Mutationis or mansio? aspects of phasing Recovery Club (NARC). Each find’s the site but with a focus of late-4th immediate hinterland (including features will guide and inform future This is still an open question. Most of Bannaventa's buildings location was logged precisely using a century coins within the walled area. field-systems, enclosures and possible excavations to determine However, finds of worked column would have been shops, workshops Total Station. These surveys yielded The date-spread in the Bannaventa track-ways) appears to have phasing and chronology. masonry and cut stone in the north- and strip-houses, all roofed in cheap 1200 coins, and a further 1500 coins coins closely matches those covered well over 200 acres. There is also evidence of some early west of the enclosed area, traces of non-durable wood-shingle tiles or found previously on the site by established for other rural sites in the + Interestingly, Watling Street did communication routes, including a possible foundations, and the fact thatch. Fewer than 2000 individual detectorist surveys have area. The potsherds also tell a not bisect the main settlement direct route leading NW from the that this part of the site has a more earthenware roof-tile fragments also been made available for similarly detailed story; and in through its centre, but was offset north gate of the walled town. 'open' nature with less crowding of have been retrieved during analysis. addition, finds of stone and worked towards the western side, as can Another possible track-way appears buildings, all point to the erection at fieldwork. No votive material has Organised fieldwalking surveys masonry in one area of the site have be seen from the geophysics to head due west from Bannaventa this location of some kind of status been found to confirm the presence across the western extent of the site raised interesting speculations about survey results on the next page. towards Borough Hill (). building, and may perhaps indicate of a shrine or temple. Slag from the have so far collected about 100,000 the existence of amansio . + In the late C2 a bank and ditch that amansio once stood here, site shows that bronze was worked potsherds; here too, the site was Combining all this evidence allows were constructed across part of Bannaventa and its western although there is no evidence of the here, and probably also iron, with marked out in grids and all finds the complex chronology of the site the settlement, reducing the hinterland; extensive field bath-house usually associated with some finds indicative of smelting were accurately located on the map. to be interpreted, revealing that: occupied area considerably. systems and roundhouses this type of complex. activities. + A second town ditch was The coins and potsherds, with their + The early Romano-British town constructed in the late C3, precise locations, were identified, was laid out haphazardly, and outside the earlier ditch, and the classified and mapped, providing developed irregularly in the late inner bank was reinforced by a Note that Watling dating evidence for the site's C1 / early C2 across a much larger Street does not pass substantial wall in the early C4. through the centre of evolution as a chronological area than that of the later walled + Outside of the newly created the walled town framework for occupation of the site. and defended posting station. ditch and rampart at the Ongoing studies will southern end of the site, focus on Bannaventa’s eastern hinterland buildings appear to have been

Early Romano-British town develops cleared and the area used as a irregularly across a wide area cemetery in the late C3 / early C4. Bank and ditch around Evidence of small Iron Age settlement on part of the site Track-way leads the site, with rectangular deep-ditched Administrative function NW from north and banked enclosure Second (outer) town ditch gate of walled reinforces the first ditch As for the functions served by Multiple phases of occupation: town + an initial Iron Age native community on the site Further defence provided Bannaventa — the evidence + early town forms around the newly-created Roman by a sturdy town wall Watling Street, and develops across an area of indicates administrative, economic about 125 ha and marketing activities, but there is Roman municipal organisation is gradually introduced: + a bank and ditch are constructed around part of the nothing to suggest that this Roman built-up area, and the town is significantly reduced Area south of the town wall is cleared in size of buildings and used as a cemetery station had either a military origin or + a second ditch is constructed outside the first ditch + a substantial town wall is constructed on top of the a later military purpose. internal bank + old buildings south of the ditched and walled town are cleared away, and the area is used as a cemetery The site developed gradually under the influence of Roman organisation, Iron age Roman occupation Saxon period This area, originally part of from a loose distributed community BC AD the town, was re-used as a cemetery after the town was 100 300 400 500 to a well defended small unit. 0 100 200 reduced in size and walled